Portfolio's Worst American CEOs of All Time

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11. Henry Frick

A father of the modern steel industry (along with his business partner, Andrew Carnegie), Frick was a vicious anti-unionist who was once voted the most hated man in America. His response to a strike at one of his steel mills—which began after he attempted to lower wages—resulted in 16 deaths and is regarded as one of the most notorious incidents in U.S. labor history. Afterward, he was shot three times and stabbed twice by an irate activist. He survived and made a full recovery.

THE STAT: Under Frick, Carnegie Steel became the largest steel company in the world, valued at $25 million.